Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1887-03-16
WEALTH ON WHEELS.
The Interchange OF Freight
Cars Among Railroads.
A System Which Governs the Use and
Return of Scattered Oars,


To the average outsider it is sourc
of wonder that the railways of tn,
United States should be able to main
tain order and system, with their con
slant interchange of rolling stock. Take
ms an example, great railway having
5000 freight cars, and it is likely tina
on any given day, from 15O0to 1000 o
these will be scattered all over til,
United States on scores OF dilfcrcn
lines of road, and yet so simple and per
feet is the syst item that with n compare
lively small force OF clerks the genera
car agent can tell within few miles o
the point where car No. 1861 is to-day
and if it is not promptly accounted fol
can very accurately place the response
bility for its detention.
The general principle, founded upon
motives of economy, is that cars should
be run loaded both ways over the road
whenever this is possible. For example,
if the Wabash were to make rates for
the shipment Of 200 car loads of mcr-
chondsc from Chicago to point on the
Pennsylvania Company's lines, it would
cndcavor SO far as practicable to load it
upon cars of the Pennsylvania Company,
thus sparing its own rolling stock, &C
commoiating the Pennsylvania Com
pany and saving the two and three
cishths cents per mile which every road
cXocts for the use of its cars by every
other.
The application of thisprinciplc some
times makes the journey of a car a slow
and tortuou' one. According to rail-
road ethics it is entirely proper to load
the car Of another company TO any point
toward the general line Of its traffic, but
improper to send it farther away, or re.
tain it for local service.
Thus car of the Boston & Maine
road might be loaded with general mcr-
chondisc from Portland, Me-, to San
Francisco. After it is unloaded the
question OF its return arises. To send it
back light would mean an expense Of
some sixty dollars. Hence it may be
loaded with fruit to Salt Lake City;
with household furniture to Omaha;
thence with grain to Kansas City; re-
loaded there with sand for St. Louis;
take another cargo TO Cincinnati, an
other to Philadelphia, another to New
York, and still another to Boston. All
the time that the car is being run on
other roads than its own the companies
using it pay the mileage named whether
1t is full or empty, and this gives them
an incentive to load it whenever pos
siblc.
In the office Of every company is kept
a set of books where its cars are entered
by numbers, and their movements from
day to day entered. Suppose car of
the Michigan Central road to pass off
from its line, en- route to Chattanooga,
Tenn. 1t would naturally 90 to Toledo
and there be delivered to the Cincinnati,
Hamilton & Dayton, to which road it
would be promptly charg cd. When it
reached Cincinnati, the Cincinnati,
Hamilton & Dayton would send postal
card, "Dclivercl car 1861 to L. e. N. -
otherwise the Louisville e Nashville
road. When the car returned it might
be delivered to the Louisville, New
Albany & Chicago road, and reach the
Michigan Central again at Chicago, or
come back by any one Of dozen differ
ent routes, but whatever one it took at
every junction point the road delivering
the car would send its card of notifica-
ton, so that the record is complete, and
every road using the car for however
short distance is charged the mileage.
Any railroad using the car of another
is supposed to inspect it when rendered
and to refuse to receive it unless it is in
good condition. Once accepted the car
must be returned to its owner or to the
proper connecting road in as good con-
dition as when received, necessary wear
and tear expected. If a car be destroyed
by fire or otherwise the road upon which
the accident occurs is absolutely respon-
sibc and must pay its value. Similarly
it must make all necessary current re-
pairs.
Sometimes it takes deal of dunning
to induce railroads to give up cars that
they get into their possession. Especi-
ally is this tue of roads that are poorly
equipped and are unable to raise the
funds to buy cars. These find the roll
ing stock OF other roads very convenient
for their local traffic, and will some
times keep it until compelled to dis
gorge.
Then the car-traccr, of whom every
road has one or more, camps on the
trail of the car or cars, taking them up
at the point where their delivery is in
dictated by the last "junction ticket"
and, as a freight car is too large to con.
veniently hide, he always succeeds.
- Detroit Free Press.